Search form

Home | Features | A festival-goer's guide to keeping your stuff safe this summer

Posted 3 August 2017

A festival-goer's guide to keeping your stuff safe this summer

Festival season is upon us, but what are the best ways to keep your valuables safe when you're dancing the night away in your wellies? Travel writer and blogger Lucy McGuire gathers some tips to help festival fans (and their parents) protect their stuff during the summer season.

13 tips to help you stay secure this festival season

Make use of bin bags and secret pockets

Why it's a bad idea to lock your tent

The festival survival basics

1.Take very little worth stealing

'Keeping your belongings safe at a festival is simple if you have little worth stealing,' says Monica Stott (@TheTravelHack), a keen festival goer and travel blogger at The Travel Hack.

‘Try taking nothing more than your phone and your debit card – and your ID if you're lucky enough to get asked your age – and keep it with you in a small bag.’

2.Get a tent with a porch

‘When buying a tent for a festival, invest in one that has a separate porch,’ says Miriam Zendle (@mzendle), a writer and avid festival-goer from London. ‘Having an extra compartment to unzip will put off potential thieves.’

Protect your valuables

3.Invest in a waterproof phone cover

‘No one wants to return home from a festival having damaged their smartphone, so invest in a waterproof cover,’ says travel writer and mum of two, Patricia Carswell (@girlontheriver).

‘It protects your phone if it rains, if someone throws a pint over you, or even worse, if you fall in the mud – I even gave one to my son.’

4.Protect your possessions with bin bags

‘Get proper cases for things like cameras and phones, but also take bin bags to festivals,’ says writer Anna Matheson (@annamatheson), who’s always on the look-out for the next festival. ‘If your tent leaks, you want to know that things are protected from damp.’

Hide your most valued items

5.Put your valuables in your sleeping bag

‘When you go to sleep in your tent at night, put your valuables in the bottom of your sleeping bag or in your pockets,’ says journalist and festival addict Suzanne Bearne (@sbearne). ‘Having things stolen from your tent is rare, but it does happen.’

6.Hide things in your mattress

‘I’ll be heading to my seventh Glastonbury Festival this year,’ says journalist, blogger and festival fan Cristina Criddle (@CristinaCriddle), ‘I always hide my small valuables that I don’t want to take out for the day.

‘Put them somewhere that’s not obvious, such as inside your blow-up mattress – no one will ever guess they’re there.’

7.Watch your pockets

‘When you’re at a festival, it’s best not to keep valuables in visible pockets,’ says Jo Hoare (@jojolizzy), author of Festivals: A Survival Guide. ‘There have been cases of people being pick-pocketed or having their pockets cut open. Get a secure bag or inside pocket that can’t be seen from the outside.’

The best festival tech

1.Buy clothes with secret pockets

‘If you want to go one step further than hiding your valuables, be really savvy and buy clothes with hidden pockets,’ says Jen Lowthrop (@Jlowthrop), a festival junkie and blogger at She Gets Around.

2.Try a tent finder app

‘With the Boutique Camping tent finder, all you do is take a picture of your tent, along with other important locations you want to remember, and your GPS locates them,’ says Ollie Mundy, co-owner of Boutique Camping (@weareboutique). ‘If you’re at a festival and need to find your tent or even your car, the finder’s simple interface helps you out.’

Beat the thieves

3. Don’t lock your tent

‘You might think it’s a good idea to lock your tent but actually, it’s not,’ says travel and festival blogger Vicky Philpott (@VickyFlipFlop) of VickyFlipFlopTravels. ‘It attracts more attention and looks like you have something worth stealing. Keep your valuables on you at all times but trust that your tent will be fine.’

4.Use a bumbag

‘I’ve been doing festivals for eight years now and my advice is to carry a bum bag.’ says Pally Kaur (@Pally1581), a senior consultant at Cherish PR.

‘Have it with you at all times – even when you’re sleeping. Knowing your valuables are safe will help you really immerse yourself in the experience.’

Use the festival facilities

5. Use a lock-up

‘Use the lock-up services,’ says Catherine, a development campaigner for Yorkshire CND (@YorkshireCND). ‘CND and Friends of the Earth groups offer a 24-hour lock-up service at Glastonbury and you can use them for all sorts of valuables from bikes and buggies to car keys and phones, or even beer.

‘The service is also available at a large number of other festivals including DeerShed and Shambala.’

6.Report stolen valuables straight away

‘If you do lose anything or have your valuables stolen, then report it immediately to the security staff,’ says festival fan Laura Moore, founder of charitable clothing store The DRM Project (@TheDRMproject).

‘That way, if you've got a written report you might be able to claim on your insurance – before you go to any festival, you should check what your home insurance and travel insurance cover.’

So whether it’s you or your children who are off to a festival this summer, it’s important to think about the less glamorous, but practical, side to your festival experience before you go. Pack wisely, plan ahead and focus on having a safe and worry-free festival experience. Oh, and don’t forget the face glitter.